


Safety in Silence

by Reddferns



Category: The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: F/M, Herbalist Reader, Slow Burn, kitsune reader - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 03:54:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29993469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reddferns/pseuds/Reddferns
Summary: Being stranded on a hostile desert planet with your supplies freshly stolen is not an ideal situation. Avoiding both the Empire and the Republic's notice while doing so is even worse. Add a chance encounter with a kindred soul? Maybe this can work.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Reader, Din Djarin/You
Kudos: 9





	Safety in Silence

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first foray into writing for the mandalorian! This story has been bouncing around my head for a while now, and I really wanted to write it. It’s going to be a multi-chapter series, going into (kind of) canon eventually. It’s SFW for now, but I do plan for it to be smutty later on.  
> Note about Kitsune!reader- I tag it with kitsune because its the most recognizable iteration of the ~fox sprite~ folklore creature. But it won’t necessarily follow the Japanese kitsune more than it follows the Korean gumiho, etc. I hope you enjoy, and feedback is welcome! Tags will be added as the work expands.  
> You can find me at foxcyare on tumblr!

Another grimy cantina. Another day of trying to find that goddamned Aqualish that stole the entirety of your stock. You curse the carelessness that led you to stashing your heavy pack away to find accommodations in town. It took months to find that patch of gindo root, and now you're stranded with no stock, little money, and no way off this planet. You grit your teeth as the smell of ethanol and unwashed bodies assault your senses. Even with your mask on, this one is worse than usual. What is an Aqualish doing on a desert planet anyways? Making your life as hard as possible, you decide, making your way to the bar.

  
"Has an aqualish passed through here?" you question the bartender.

  
He looks down at you lazily, continuing to polish the glass in his hands. "Why? You lookin' for trouble?" his posture is aggressive, leaning over close, close enough to smell his tepid breath.  
"Not unless you give me what you want." you counter. The bartender laughs meanly and turns away. "Get outta here unless you're paying for drinks"  
You growl in frustration and glare at his back for a minute. Fine.

  
You're hopping off the stool to try to find someone else when you run headfirst into a wall of metal. A Mandalorian? That's rare.

  
"Ow! Jeez. Personal space, dude." you rub at your aching forehead. The figure doesn't move, their visor unmoving.

  
"What did you say about an aqualish?" The voice is modulated and abrupt. You stare into the visor, trying to make eye contact, wherever that may be. "I'm looking for one. Know any nearby?" You reply.

  
The mandalorian mutters something, you can barely catch the swearing, and a name? Karga? He turns on his heel and leaves as swiftly as he appeared. Weird, but this was the most promising lead you've got yet. If you knew anything about mandalorians- which admittedly wasn't much- he was probably hunting a bounty, and they don't take failure as a result. He didn't seem too friendly, though, so you resolve to keep your distance as you follow him out of the cantina.

\----

At least it's easy to see the armour in the blazing sun. The helmet shines like a disco ball. It's been a couple hours, and you've tracked the mandalorian as he makes his way through marketplaces, shady alleys, and another cantina. He's still in there as you laze around on the roof of a house across the way. He's impressive, you note. The way he makes his way through a town, methodically checking every place an outlaw might hide.

  
Hopefully the mandalorian gets the guy before he figures out what is in your pack. To the untrained eye, it may seem like a mess of leaves, flower bundles, muddy roots, and unlabelled vials. To you, it's your livelihood. Rare remedies, natural drugs, dyes, and ingredients for all sorts of delicacies. All sorts of things that clients pay premiums for, and the things you hop from planet to planet to forage.

  
The click of a safety going off brings you back to full alert. Damn it. The warm sun and stress of the day must've caught up. You raise your hands and slowly turn to see a barrel pointed between your eyes. The mandalorian you've been tailing stands over you, silhouetted by the sun.

  
"Take it easy, I'm not here to cause any trouble with you." You try to keep your voice from betraying the shakiness you feel.

"Why are you following me?" He counters. Fair enough.

"I'm looking for an aqualish. Same as you, right?"

"You with the guild?"

"I'm not a bounty hunter, if that's what you're asking. He stole my stuff, and I'm just trying to get it back." You slowly reach up to your mask and pull it down to expose the rest of your face. His helmet tilts slightly.

"I can help you find him, because I'm not doing anything else until I get my stuff. I can pay too." Your hood had slipped down during your nap, and you feel too exposed next to this armoured figure. The intensity of his gaze makes you catch your breath.

  
A tense moment passes, and he slowly lowers his blaster. He doesn't holster it, however. "Do anything suspicious, and I will shoot you. And don't get in my way." He warns.

  
You nod and mock salute. "Yessir."

  
You get up and dust yourself off, pulling on your mask and hood once again. The mandalorian keeps a close watch as you leap off the roof, catch on a balcony, and land gracefully on the sandy pathway. His descent is rougher, opting to jump onto a nearby wall and land hard on his feet.

  
"You know, that's really bad for your knees." you point out, as he takes a second to adjust his legs again. "I don't know what your armour can do, but I don't think it'll keep your tendons from snapping next time."

  
He doesn't respond, just takes your arm and starts to walk you down the street.

  
"So have you found any leads?" you ask. You were mostly hopeless until you had bumped into the mandalorian. Your sense of smell, your usual tracker, is dulled significantly in these hot dusty planets. Another reason to get off this awful rock.

  
He leads you through a small alleyway. "He's hiding nearby. But he's not alone. Can you fight?"

  
You weigh your response. "I can use a blaster fine, but I'm better with my knives." You pull back your cloak, showing him the myriad of blades and shoddy blaster on your belt. "They're mostly for harvesting, but a blade's a blade." You shrug. The mandalorian may be permitting you to tag along, but you had no idea if he could be trusted with knowledge of what you are.  
He grunts approvingly. "I need to bring the bounty alive. If it turns into a fight, let me handle it."

  
He stops at a door, and tucks both of you into the wall. "Hey." you whisper, getting his attention as he preps his blaster. "Remember, I need my stuff. Try not to destroy anything?" you ask softly. He takes a second, nods, and positions himself in front of the door. You grip your hunting blade tighter.

  
The mandalorian kicks open the door, and all hell breaks loose. As he charges in, you hear shouts and fumbling. Blaster fire rings out and as you peek in, you see the mandalorian grappling with another figure. Quickly scanning the room, you don't see your pack, but the smell hits you. They were smoking your elfroot! Bastards! You step inside to help the mandalorian when you're grabbed by thick arms around your neck. Something hits your hand and your knife skids away. You're restrained, and it looks like the mandalorian isn't doing so well either. Two others are holding him down, but he's putting up a hell of a fight. One of them, you recognise, is the one that took your things. You kick at the man holding you, but he's a lot stronger, and he's got a lock on your airways. Only one way to get out now.

  
You shift into your fox form, and slip out of your attacker's grasp. You run in between his legs and shift back as you grab your knife, plunging it into the neck of the aqualish that was holding you. He falls, grasping at his throat, and you run and deliver a swift kick to one of the guys holding the mandalorian down. He's stunned, and that gives enough of an opportunity for the mandalorian to take the other down with a vibroblade. His back is turned, and he only turns in time to see the stunned aqualish fire a blaster directly at him. You react instinctively, summoning fire to catch the shot before it hits the mandalorian. It works, and the mandalorian is immediately upon him, kneeling on his chest and locking him in cuffs.  
Fights are always so abrupt. It feels like forever, until it's over in a blink. You scan the room as you pant, feeling the ache in your throat and muscles. In the corner, in a messy heap, you see your pack. You gather your things, relieved that the elfroot is the only thing they took. It's messy, as they must've sorted through it roughly, but everything is intact. The mandalorian is roughly pulling the bounty to his feet, as he spits and groans at the armoured man. He's staring again.

  
"Do you have a ship?" You ask, padding over to him, careful not to get too close to the bounty. He nods with effort, and you notice his chest is still heaving, small grunts and pants coming through his modulator.

  
It isn't until you leave the room you're able to smell the blood coming from the mandalorian. You thought it might've just been your knife or on your clothes, but human blood smells different.  
"Hey! You're hurt, slow down." You take the mandalorian's arm. He stops and his helmet turns to you. "My ship is close by. You got your things, I have no more business with you." He grits out.  
Your eyes narrow. "I can help, and I'm not leaving until you're okay. I did say I could pay you."

  
The bounty hisses something in a language you can't understand, and the mandalorian gives him a shake. His other hand is holding his side, and you can tell the movement is agonising. You grab the bounty and shove the mandalorian's hand off as gently as possible.

  
"Where's your ship?" you demand, smacking away his attempt to grab at the bounty again. "Just keep holding the wound. I'll hold him" You snatch a cloth from your bag and hand it to the mandalorian, he takes it and presses it into his side. Too much blood is already soaking it, and the smell doesn't help the rising panic.

  
He points down a street, into a hangar. You try your best to move fast, while staying at a pace he can keep up.

  
It feels like an eternity but you make it to the hangar. A silver ship waits, a model you've never seen before. The mandalorian presses something on his vambrace and a ramp lowers, and you have to help him up. The bounty doesn't resist when you shove him into the room the mandalorian points out. "He'll be fine there for now." he murmurs, collapsing onto the floor.

  
You catch him and lower him down, propping him up on the wall. The cloth is soaked now, and he points weakly at a cabinet. "Bacta." it's almost a whisper.

  
You're about to get up when you realise that won't be enough. Digging through your pack, you try to be soothing. "Hey. Hey. Stay with me okay, can you get your armour off?" You ask, finding vials and sniffing at them to find the right one.

  
"What are you doing?" He mutters, but starts to unbuckle his chestplate with his free hand. Finally, you find the right one. The mandalorian has managed to peel back the layers and you take the cloth away, gasping at the torn flesh. He must've gotten clipped by one of the aqualish's blades.

  
"This is going to hurt, but please, trust me." You plead, uncorking the vial and pouring it onto his side. The effects are immediate, and you try to keep him still, sitting on his legs with both hands on his chest. Even as he tries to keep quiet, he can't help the yell that bursts out. "What did you do?" He demands, thrashing and stiffening in pain.

  
"Stay still! This will close up your wound and replenish some of the blood you've lost!" You're using most of your strength to keep him down. Even wounded, he almost shoves you off. Gindo oil is one of the most potent healing substances around. Thank the maker you still had one vial left. If it wasn't so expensive and sought after, you wouldn't bother going to these awful desert planets to forage some. However, you knew the pain he was in. You've used it on a blaster shot before, and it was one of the worst things you've ever felt.  
He calms down after a while, breathing heavily. He's quiet, and you can't tell if he's passed out. You get up, and start to clean the blood that's on both of you.

"Thank you."

  
The voice makes you jump. You turn and see the mandalorian's helmet tilted up to you. His wound looks a lot better, an indented pink crater on his tanned skin. It won't even scar. You smile apologetically. "Are you feeling better?"

  
"I.. yes." He clears his throat. You sit down next to him.

  
"I'm sorry that was so painful. Bacta wouldn't have been able to close it up soon enough, though."

  
He thumps his helmet back to the wall with a big exhale. "It was fine."

  
You raise your eyebrow at him but say nothing. The silence is calm, when he starts. "The bounty."

  
He gets up with a groan, and goes to check on the bounty. There's some shuffling and the mandalorian steps back into the room, alone. "He's taken care of." is all he says.

  
There's a pause, as you stare from the floor, and the mandalorian watches you from the doorway.

  
"Can you-"

  
"Do yo-"

  
You both speak at the same time, cutting each other off. He clears his throat and waves you on.

  
"Can you take me with you? Just for a bit?" you ask. "I have nothing else to do here, and I don't have a way to get around on my own. You're a bounty hunter, you travel a lot, right? Could you.." You trail off, somewhat awkwardly.

  
The mandalorian tilts his helmet at you. "It's the least I can do." He says. You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding. He was hard to read, and it could’ve gone either way. You grin at him. "Thank you."


End file.
